A meeting of the Transportation Committee/Committee of the Whole was held in the Board Room, Administration Building, Toll Plaza, San Francisco, California, on Thursday, December 16, 2010, at 10:05 a.m., Acting and Vice Chair Cochran presiding.

There were no meetings of the Advisory Committee on Accessibility in December 2010.

b.

Bus Passengers Advisory Committee

The Meeting Summary of the meeting of Wednesday, November 3, 2010, was furnished to the Transportation Committee. Copies are available in the Office of the District Secretary and on the District’s web site.

c.

Ferry Passengers Advisory Committee

There were no meetings of the Ferry Passengers Advisory Committee in December 2010.

Action by the Board – None Required

2.

Approve Actions Relative to the Disposition of Surplus Buses and Paratransit Vans

In a memorandum to Committee, Deputy General Manager/Bus Transit Division Teri Mantony and General Manager Denis Mulligan reported on staff’s recommendation to declare, as surplus, the following 58 District buses and paratransit vans; and, authorize staff to proceed with disposition of these vehicles: 1) six 2002 paratransit vans, purchased in 2002; 2) eight sixty-foot 1990 New Flyer articulated buses, purchased used and rehabilitated in 2004; 3) thirty-four forty-foot 1991 TMC buses, purchased used and rehabilitated in 2003; and, 4) ten forty-foot 1997 Nova buses.

The staff report stated that the District purchased the vehicles using Federal Transit Administration (FTA) funds and all 58 have reached the end of their useful lives, defined by the FTA as twelve years of service or a minimum of 500,000 miles for large, heavy-duty transit buses and 5 years or a minimum of 150,000 miles for medium-sized, light-duty vehicles. Furthermore, the FTA is entitled to a share in the proceeds of the sale or disposal of FTA-funded vehicles, with proceeds less than $5,000.00 per vehicle to be credited to the District’s reserves and proceeds over $5,000.00 per vehicle to be used to support other FTA-eligible capital projects. The FTA’s approval is required in advance and all proceeds would be processed in accordance with FTA Circular 5010.1D and the District’s procurement manual. A copy of the staff report is available in the Office of the District Secretary and on the District’s web site.

At the meeting, Maintenance Director Steve Miller briefly summarized the staff report. He stated that the surplus buses and paratransit vans are ready for sale.

Discussion ensued, including the following comments and inquiries:

Director Snyder inquired as to whether the useful life referred to in the staff report is standard. Mr. Miller answered affirmatively, stating that staff used the FTA definition to determine the useful life of the vehicles.

Director Cochran made the following inquiries:

He inquired as to whether District receipts in excess of $5,000.00 would have to be returned to the FTA. In response, Mr. Miller stated that funds received in excess of $5,000.00 for the sale of any one of these vehicles would either be reimbursed to the FTA for their share of the grant, or rolled into another FTA capital project. He added that buses and paratransit vans that have reached the end of their useful lives typically do not retain value in excess of $5,000.00, but are instead valued only as scrap. He stated that, if they should sell for less than $5,000.00 per vehicle, then that money can be added to the District’s General Fund.

He hypothesized receiving $5,000.00 or more for a bus that was originally 80% funded by the FTA, and inquired as to how much the District would be required to reimburse the FTA. In response, Mr. Miller stated that 80% of the amount would have to be either returned to the FTA or rolled into another FTA capital project. He added that the District typically rolls receipts from surplus bus and paratransit van sales back into FTA funded capital projects.

Director Grosboll inquired as to whether the District has already replaced the surplus vehicles. Mr. Miller responded affirmatively. Ms. Mantony added that the District has an option to purchase additional buses in the spring of 2011.

Staff recommended and the Committee concurred by motion made and seconded by Directors STROEH/McGLASHAN to forward the following recommendation to the Board of Directors for its consideration:

RECOMMENDATION

The Transportation Committee recommends that the Board of Directors approve actions relative to the District’s surplus buses and paratransit vans:

a.

Declare, as surplus, six 2002 paratransit vans, and authorize staff to proceed with the disposition of these vans;

b.

Declare, as surplus, eight sixty-foot 1990 New Flyer articulated buses, and authorize staff to proceed with the disposition of these buses;

c.

Declare, as surplus, thirty-four forty-foot 1991 TMC buses, and authorize staff to proceed with the disposition of these buses; and,

d.

Declare, as surplus, ten forty-foot 1997 Nova buses, and authorize staff to proceed with the disposition of these buses.

Action by the Board at its Meeting of December 17, 2010 – Resolution
NON-CONSENT CALENDAR

The monthly report on Bridge Traffic and Transit Ridership Trends and Transit Service Performance was furnished to the Transportation Committee. The report shows the annual trend lines for the 12-month period ending October 2010, and includes the following charts:

a.

Southbound Golden Gate Bridge Traffic Trend for the period from June 2004 to October 2010, showing the annual percentage change in traffic for the 12 months ending October 2010;

b.

Golden Gate Ferry Ridership Trend for the period from June 2004 through October 2010 showing the annual percentage change in ridership for the 12 months ending October 2010; and,

c.

GGT Bus Ridership Trend as a 12-month running total from June 2004 through October 2010 showing the annual percentage change in ridership for the 12 months ending October 2010.

The monthly report also included the Transit Service Performance Statistics Report for October 2010, showing that, during the month of October 2010, average weekday bus productivity increased, while weekend and holiday bus productivity decreased, as measured by passengers per trip and load factor. Ferry productivity, as measured by passengers per trip and load factor, increased on weekdays and decreased on weekends and holidays. Copies of all of the above-listed items are available in the Office of the District Secretary and on the District’s web site.

Action by the Board – None Required

4.

Monthly Report on Activities Related to Marin Local Service Contract with the Marin County Transit District

The monthly report on activities related to the Marin local service contract with the Marin County Transit District (MCTD) was furnished to the Transportation Committee. The report included the following elements:

a.

Revised spreadsheets from the Planning Department outlining Golden Gate Transit (GGT) bus service performance of both District regional routes and Marin Transit local routes, for October 2010; and,

b.

A spreadsheet from the Auditor-Controller outlining the history of payments made from July 1, 2010 to November 1, 2010, by Marin Transit to the District for intra-county bus transit services in Marin County.

Discussion ensued, including the following inquiry:

Director Cochran inquired as to the reason farebox recovery is lower than the target performance figure for GGT bus service. In response, Mr. Wire stated that loss of ridership, which has been significant, affects farebox recovery. Ridership is expected to increase as the economy improves. He added that District staff is investigating the possibility of taking trips with low ridership out of service in order to keep costs down.

Due to the high volume of agendas and minutes from Marin County agencies related to this item, hard copies of those items were not provided to the Committee. Instead, electronic versions of the following items were posted on the District’s web site: